Insider moves: Neo and wife assume substantial stake in JV partner Boldtek in married deal
Neo Kah Kiat, founder and CEO of caterer Neo Group, and his wife Liew Oi Peng have taken a stake of 8.21% in Boldtek in a married deal. Neo Group, which is being privatised by Neo, is in a property JV with Boldtek, which is in construction and property development.
Neo and Liew, via a vehicle called Twinkle Investment, acquired nearly 15.3 million Boldtek shares for some $1.2 million, which works out to an average of eight cents per share, according to a filing by Boldtek on April 6. The identity of the seller was not disclosed in the same filing.
The JV on April 8 completed the collective purchase of an existing residential property for $26.5 million. The property, at 8, Lorong 25A Geylang Road, sits on a freehold site of 11,429 sq ft and is zoned for residential or institutional use with a gross plot ratio of 2.8 and an allowable height of up to eight storeys, under
the URA 2019 Masterplan.
“The proposed acquisition is in line with the company’s plan to increase its involvement in the property development business and expand beyond its general building and construction core business,” says Boldtek.
On Feb 10, Boldtek announced that revenue for 1HFY2021 ended Dec 31, 2020, was down 38.9% y-o-y to $23 million. However, thanks to some $2.6 million worth of government grants, the company was able to report stable earnings of $325,000 up 7.3% y-o-y from $303,000. As at Feb 10, Boldtek’s order book was around $135 million. “The group will continue to tender for public and private sector projects leveraging on its established and strong track record.”
On March 30, Neo announced his intention to buy out all other Neo Group shareholders at 60 cents per share, a 20% premium over the last traded price before the offer was made public. He and his wife already control more than 80% of the company, which he built from scratch around 30 years ago.
“The offeror is of the view that the offer represents an opportunity for shareholders to realise their investment in the shares at a premium to historical prices without incurring brokerage and trading costs in an uncertain economic environment,” states the offer announcement. Provenance Capital has been appointed the independent financial advisor.
Aberdeen reverses stance on Yoma
Standard Life Aberdeen, a substantial shareholder of Yoma Strategic Holdings, has trimmed its stake in the Myanmar-based conglomerate. Following the military coup on Feb 1, Aberdeen added to its stake in Yoma after shares reacted to the news. However, since then, Yoma’s share price dipped further.
On April 1, Aberdeen sold nearly 1.8 million Yoma shares for $252,732.33, which works out to an average of 14.1 cents each. As such, Aberdeen now holds some 134.2 million shares, equivalent to a stake of 5.998%.
Aberdeen’s sale marks a change from what it did just nearly two months ago. For example, on Feb 15, it acquired nearly 8.36 million shares on the open market for $1.6 million, or just over 19.2 cents each. This brings its total holdings to around 142.3 million shares, or 6.32%.
Other institutional investors who held stakes in Yoma had also been selling. For example, on Feb 16, Boston Management and Research sold 13 million shares for some $2.4 million, which works out to around 18.6 cents each. It was left with just over 108.7 million shares, equivalent to 4.86% and down from 5.44%. As the stake has dropped below 5%, the parties involved are no longer obliged to make further disclosures if Boston Management cuts its stake further.
For the year ended Sept 30, 2020, Yoma reported losses of US$60.5 million ($81.2 million), up 64.3% from losses of US$36.9 million in the preceding year. Revenue in the same period was US$103.4 million, up 13.6% from US$91 million a year ago.